The FTSE 100 closed higher on Thursday as investors picked up bargains among the most heavily hit shares in the FTSE 100.

Earlier in the week, travel shares rallied sharply as news of a slowdown in the number of coronavirus cases caused some optimism among investors.

On Thursday it was the turn of the retailers and advertising companies to enjoy some attention from investors as Next, ITV and JD Sports all rose more than 7%.

Housebuilder shares were also higher with Taylor Wimpey up 7% and Barratt Developments rising 5%.

Just Eat was the top riser after its newly acquired takeaway.com reported a significant jump in revenue. Food delivery companies are one of the sectors that have seen steady demand through the spread of coronavirus and even enjoyed spikes in demand.

Hopes that the coronavirus crisis would soon peak have increased this week as epicentres in Italy and Spain had seen the number of new cases decline.

Later in the session markets received the latest instalment of stimulus from the United Sates in the form of a $2.3 trillion stimulus package from the the Federal Reserve.

The move was a surprise to investors who thought the Fed had spent its ammunition with previous rounds of stimulus.

“The Federal Reserve and the U.S. government are willing to go to extreme lengths to support the economy and that has been far beyond my expectations,” said Dev Kantesaria, founder of US hedge fund Valley Forge Capital Management.

The FTSE 100 closed the week at 5,842, up 2.9% on the day.